Wherever you go
by Sakurablossom606
Summary: Itasaku Non-Mass. Sakura and the rest of team 7 have been given a mission; find out why a local town has been completely deserted and bring it's missing residents to safety. Itachi joins them en-route and weird things start happening at night, the closer they get to the town; crying children, mysterious shadows and... Why do they know Sakura's name? What do they want?
1. Chapter 1

Hi everyone! I know I should be updating 'The Decision' if I'm updating anything, I had a spare hour to write this and thought I'd put it up! I know it's not as good as my usual standard but I wanted to give you guys SOMETHING...

Anyway, I thought I'd let you guys know that I've made a Facebook account for me to tell followers when I've updated!

I know that's a little weird, as this sort of thing is usually done on tumblr or something similar, but it's easier for me to connect to Facebook. I promise absolute secrecy if you add me using your actual name; I will only ever update using my account and I will never, EVER post on your timeline or bother you. If you want to promote your own stories, or other stories you think are good, inbox me, tell me your fanfiction name and I'll put it on my timeline. This account is only ever going to be used to tell you story progress, my ideas, my own random sayings and

advice

.

If you don't want to add me feel free to just inbox as I am public or just check up every now and then.

My Facebook name is Sakura Blossom and the profile picture is of past of my eye and a blue hat. It says that my birthday is in 1997 but that is false, though I am under the age of 20 if that makes you feel more at ease xx

Hope some of you are interested, but on with the story!

Disclaimer for every chapter in this story: I do not own Naruto; I only own the plot.

Team 7 had a mission; they were to investigate the disappearances at a nearby town. Any visitors had gone missing and all inhabitants were gone without a trace.

The mission was to find out what had happened to the villagers first and foremost and then they were, if they had not already, to find out what was the cause of the disappearances.

Team 7 weren't the naïve little genin anymore; they were fully fledged jônin now and were the strongest team in Konoha. ANBU were practically begging them to join them and Danzo was interested in having them join root; they would never let that happen even if it killed them. Sakura was now a beautiful 17 year old woman; she had beautiful feminine curves and a pretty face. She had stubbornly kept her hair short, as she thought it showed that she didn't care solely for her looks; besides she liked it like that anyway.

The boys of team 7, excluding Kakashi, were also more mature. They were even more handsome than before and still kept their stubborn rivalry. They all had one thing in common though; their fan clubs were huge, though they all knew Sakura had the biggest. This made the old team 7 members very protective of their sole female member; they didn't like that she might be taken from them despite her obvious protests to their beliefs.

It was also rumoured that even the great Itachi Uchiha was interested in Sakura; he didn't believe in pestering women who don't return a mans affections though, so he never told her how he really felt. Even though he didn't know it, Sakura had romantic feelings for him. They were good friends and she really enjoyed spending time with him; he had few good friends so she felt honoured that she was one of them. She didn't want to ruin the friendship they had by confessing; it could break him.

Sakura was currently running with her team to the abandoned village. She stopped when she heard a thump from behind her. She turned and smiled when she saw who it was. "Hey Itachi." She grinned; Itachi nodded at her a small smirk on his face. "Sakura." Sasuke and Naruto scowled, completely aware of how Itachi felt. Kakashi nodded respectively at Itachi, to which he returned. "What brings you here Itachi?" He asked curiously.

Itachi glanced at him. "The Hokage believes that my assistance may be necessary; this case has just grown a little more serious." Sakura narrowed her eyes. "How so?" She queried. Itachi looked away. "More disappearances claims came through to the village; they say that these disappearances happened only hours ago. The things that happened previous to their leaving were... sickening." He closed his eyes. "The claims came from people who escaped. They had been running for hours from a nameless supernatural being when some of their friends went missing in the middle of the night. They were found completely hysterical by some of our own ninja and brought back to the village and their missing friends were found dead and mutilated."

There was a deadly silence for a few moments. "That's why the Hokage believes that you may need more help. There's more people on standby in case things go badly and we need backup." Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke nodded tersely. Kakashi looked up. "It's getting late," He started quietly. "We need to make camp." Itachi nodded. "Right." Kakashi looked at them all. "I've only brought the one tent; it'll fit everyone in so don't worry too much."

Later that night...

Sakura woke feeling strange, she didn't know why, but she definitely did. She froze in absolute horror when she heard something outside the tent. She moved further to the side of the tent to hear better, though she did so reluctantly. Suddenly she heard the most disturbing sound in her life; she heard uncontrolled, frightened, little girl's cries. She slapped a hand to her mouth to stop herself from letting out a frightened sound. As calmly as she could, she unzipped the tent and walked out. The crying quietened and she looked around cautiously. "Hello?" she called gently. "Little girl? Are you hurt?" Silence.

SNAP.

She whirled around when she heard a twig snap and back where she came from when she heard footsteps and even louder crying. She extended her chakra and tried to sense where the being was; nothing could be picked up.

There was nothing there.

With wide eyes, she whirled around and ran as fast as she could back to the tent, zipping it up as fast as she could. Her breathing quickened when she heard the sound get closer.

As quickly as she could, she scampered over to her boys and Itachi. She was on the brink of hyperventilating, when she shook them awake frantically. "Wake up!" She begged, sobs starting to change her voice. "Oh God... Oh God...Get up!" They all groggily opened their eyes and sat up curiously until they saw Sakura's panicked face. "What's wrong?" Itachi asked sharply. She shook her head, putting a finger to her lips. "I heard a child crying and went out to investigate-" Kakashi interrupted. "Where is she then?" He asked looking around the tent expectantly. Sakura looked at him fearfully. "That's the point! There's nothing out there! I checked! Sensed for chakra and everything... there's nothing there..." She froze when she heard soft footsteps and the others stiffened in realisation. She made a distressed sound in the back of her throat when the crying started up, louder than last time. She put a hand to her mouth and grabbed Itachi's hand.

His eyes were wider than usual and it wasn't because she was holding him. "Gods..." He breathed. "There's nothing there..." Kakashi, Sasuke and Naruto froze; they didn't doubt their 'sister' but having Itachi confirm the impossible really brought it home. Suddenly the crying stopped and a hand indetation appeared at the side of the lining of the tent, right next to Sakura's head. She glanced at it, her eyes wide. "Help me..." The sobbing voice begged. "Help me..." A scream pierced the empty silence of the forest and what appeared to be blood splattered the side of the tent. Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto let out a horrified cry and their superiors gave a shocked gasp. "HELP ME!" It screamed in desperation. Suddenly, the tent began shaking. That was the end of it for Sakura and the others; Naruto in the lead, they ran out of the tent and began running as fast as they could. It didn't matter where; just away from the tent and the haunting cries of the small, frightened and dying girl.

Just for a moment, she looked back to see what had become of the tent and her eyes widened in horror and disbelief at what she saw.

There was no little girl, no blood and nothing was there to possibly shake the tent, though it was clearly moving.

There was nothing there.

OK...! I Hope you guys enjoyed that and yes; I am going to update this one too!

Do not fret! I will make 'The Decision' top priority!

Ja Ne!

Sakurablossom606 xx


	2. Chapter 2

Hey guys! This has to be a record for me ne? I'm updating more quickly because I've discovered the copy and paste tool I can use via iPad.

I hope the last chapter spooked you, even if it was only a little! That was what I was aiming for! I apologise; it appears that the dividers I made for the sections did not work so I have used different ones this week! xx

IMPORTANT

Again, please consider the Facebook account I made; if you have no idea what I'm talking about, go to the AN on the previous chapter.

Without further adieu, on with the story!

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Chapter 2: Apprehensive feelings

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Sakura didn't know where she was.

She had been holding Itachi's hand one minute, much to her embarrassment, and then the next his hand had... slipped away. A tree had fallen from next to them and they had been forced to let go or face having their arms chopped off.

She'd had to practically fly backwards to try and avoid it and, while she had been airborne, had been hit in the back of the head by a branch, consequently knocking her unconscious.

Gingerly, she rubbed the growing lump on her head and slowly got to her feet. She was a little concerned that her teammates and best friend were not around her, waiting for her to get up. Her heart fell into her stomache and she was immediately on guard.

Something was wrong.

Glancing around at the wreckage surrounding her, she noticed that a great deal of other tree's had also fallen; it almost looked like the aftermath of a furious battle and you could now see the dark sky above without being hindered by the tree line.

Senses being completely on edge, she was acutely aware of every little brush of wind and every crackle of the leaves around her. She slowly put one foot forward. Then another. Then another.

Swallowing deeply, Sakura metally shook herself and continued walking, steps jerky and hesitant, towards the edge of the tree in front of her; she was going to have to face what was out of there head on.

Forcing some chakra into her legs, she jumped as high as she possibly could and stood on top of the fallen trunk.

She gaped at what she saw.

It was like a sea of endless fallen foliage, the tree's started again a good two miles away from where she stood.

It was likely, in Sakura's opinion, that her friends had just assumed that she had made her own way out after the had been separated and were now looking for her elsewhere. The sequence of falling trees had probably forced them to continue on, or else be beheaded if they let their guard down. In other words, Sakura was completely other own until help arrived.

With whatever had been messing with them earlier.

Sakura repressed a shudder when she remembered how eerie the child cries had been, how utterly terrified she had been...

Sakura gritted her teeth; she had to calm down and properly analyse the situation or she'd be panicking and like the weak little girl she used to be.

1) Her head was pounding; caused by the blow to her head. Reactions likely to be slower and less powerful.

2) She was on her own; defenses and sensing must be increased or else she could be killed before she could even register an attack.

3) She had to find her friends before whatever caused this mess did.

Though not entirely reassuring, these facts eased her mind slightly. First things first she had to decide whether to heal her injury or if she should just get going; the quicker she left the quicker she'd be out of this mess.

"Sakura..."

Said girl was moving towards the line of tree's in front of her faster than she could even follow.

Oh god oh god oh god!

Sakura could hear the small feet running after her, close enough to be within earshot, for her heart to pound like a drum and for her nerve endings to on fire.

"Why are you running Sakura Haruno? Don't you want to see me again? Don't you wanna... Play a game?"

Sakura could feel hysteria building up in her throat and her eyes sting, tears threatening to fall.

And what the hell did she mean by see me 'again'?

She was a Kunoichi goddamn it! This shouldn't affect her so much... But she could help but be afraid of the voice, fear what the little girl meant by a 'GAME'...

...And how the hell did that... GIRL... know her name?

Why was she only following HER? How did she know her name? What did she WANT...?

Gritting her teeth with new resolve, she pumped even more chakra into her legs to put more space between her and her pursuer. She had to find her teammates now or she was going to die here, found in a mess of wood and leaves, mutilated and completely destroyed like those villagers were.

She'd be damned before that happened. She had a life to live and a little girl was not going to stop her!

Though that little girl may have already lived hers...

She could hear distressed, frustrated noises coming from the being being her and she smirked; she was falling behind and the forest was only metres away.

"NARUTO! SASUKE! KAKASHI! ITACH! HELP ME, PLEASE!" She screamed as loudly as she could; she hated to sound so pathetic but she really needed them. The girl was picking up fast now they were in natural forest again; Sakura had the advantage before because she was trained to be good in that type of terrain, whereas the little girl clearly wasn't.

Now, the little girl was back in her own environment.

She was running out of time.

Her heart leapt when she heard muffled shouts. "Sakura?! Where are you?!" Naruto, Sakura almost laughed with relief. "IM HERE! PLEASE, BE AS QUICK AS YOU CA-"

She stopped abruptly when a pale, pasty face, blood dripping from her smiling lips, appeared directly in her path; there was no avoiding her.

Collision was unavoidable.

"ARRGGGGHHHHHHH!"

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And that is the end of chapter two! Sorry for the evil cliffhanger but I had to do it! xx

Again, look at the previous chapters authors notes for details about the Facebook account I set up; let me know if any of you are interested or currently using it.

Thanks for reading everyone!

Ja ne!

Sakurablossom606 xx


	3. Chapter 3: Discovery

Hey everyone! I'm back!

I can't believe how quickly I can update this! I know it's late but I have more time to do things at this time.

Hope the last chapter spooked you a little! I apologise again for the cliffhanger that was a little cruel ;P

Hope you enjoy this new chapter! Don't forge to R & R people, I live for them! They make me happy and I'm thinking of publishing a real book later in the year if I can get my plot straight so I appreciate constructive criticisms about my stories!

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Chapter 3: Discovery

"ARRGGGHHHHH!"

Sakura screamed in horror as the little girl's face came closer and closer, she flung her arms in front of her face, valiantly trying to shield herself in some way.

"SAKURA! NO!"

She could tell without looking that it was Naruto who screamed in utter horror and she could vaguely hear her other teammates sounds of distress. She wasn't sure what would happen when she collided with the grinning spirit in front of her but she could tell that she was going to regret ever accepting the damn mission.

She closed her eyes, letting happy memories flood into her brain; first meeting her team, eating at Ichiraku with them, laughing at Naruto's terrible jokes while Sasuke merely smirked, sitting under the stars and pointing out the different constellations for her her friends...

First meeting Itachi...

She smiled.

_FLASHBACK_

_A 14 year old Sakura Haruno walked nervously behind Sasuke, Naruto walking just as apprehensively beside her; they were going to be meeting their teammates prestigious clan for the first time. _

_Sakura met the blonde Jinchurikki's eyes and they both displayed their inner panic; what if they messed up? Would Sasuke's father, who he spoke often and poorly of, request his son to be moved to another team? _

_Sakura inwardly slapped herself. 'Get a grip Sakura!' she scolded. 'If you keep a cool head, be polite and smile what reason would they have to complain?'_

_Sakura looked to Naruto again to see the same far away look in cerulean blue eyes; would he be able to behave just this one time and NOT blow it?She loved her teammate like a brother but he had the innate ability to be able to attract the most unwanted attention. _

_She closed her eyes and huffed, not realising that she was about to run into someone standing directly in front of her. _

_Her eyes snapped back open and she slowly looked up at the person she was now chest to chest with. Her vision was unable to comprehend the person properly and she could only see the person as a black figure. She inwardly cheered when she saw that it was a woman, long hair falling in a ponytail at the back of her head. The mysterious woman was surprisingly tall and Sakura hastily stepped back, blushing slightly in embarrassment. _

_"S-Sorry Miss Uchiha! I wasn't looking where I was going!" She stuttered in complete embarrassment. She looked up again and frowned inwardly; this woman was quite the unfortunate one; no chest to speak of and she could just make out the deep stress lines that ran down from the corner of her eyes to her cheeks..._

_She turned when she heard a horrified gasp from behind her; her black haired teammates' eyes were wide and his mouth hung open. She glanced at Naruto and saw that he was barely restraining his laughter, though his eyes looked sympathetically at her. _

_Confused she turned back to the silent woman and smiled shyly. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure what's gotten into them." For a moment there was a awkward pause. "Do not worry too much, my foolish little brother can often become... easily distracted."_

_Sakura frowned up at the woman slightly in her confusion; little brother? "You have a sister Sasuke?" She questioned innocently, making Sasuke choke slightly. "Why didn't you ever say anything? I thought you only had an older brother." _

_Naruto chuckled awkwardly. "Uhhh Sakura...? You might want to back up some more." Sakura raised a brow and stood next to him, before looking back at the figure. "So what's your name Miss..." Her next words died on her lips, pure horror and fear evident on her face. _

_"...Itachi." The MAN finished. "I am Sasuke's older... brother." _

_Sakura flushed 10 different shades of red before paling considerably, her knees suddenly becoming weak. _

_"O-Oh... U-Umm... I s-see... I-Um-" She managed to force a small, twitching smile on her face. "Sasuke speaks of you often, it's nice to... Meet you..?" Her statement ended up coming out more like a question due to her anxiety. _

_Itachi, she noted while blushing furiously, was very attractive; even more so than his younger brother. His long hair should of been a major turn off but it had completely the opposite effect..._

_She snapped out of her trance when Sasuke cleared his throat. "Shall we get going? Mother will be nearly finished with dinner.." _

END FLASHBACK

After that, Itachi had grown on her considerably. After that brief encounter, she had managed to form an odd kind of bond with him that could never be broken. He also appeared to become more interested and comfortable with her as he soon sought her out as often as time would allow; they became the best of friends mores easily than she and Ino had done.

But that didn't matter now. She shut her eyes and waited for impact.

But something shoved her out of the way and sent both of them tumbling to the ground.

Sakura's eyes snapped open and she tried to look at the person who was holding so tightly onto her waist. When the person hastily stood up, she glanced at her teammates who stood across the clearing; but her eyes widened in horror when she realised that Itachi was with the group after all, relief painted on his pale face.

Oh shit.

She stood up abruptly and readied her hand, standing on guard but not yet willing to injure her unknown saviour. She narrowed her eyes when she came face to face with large, penetrating, pale green eyes, reminiscent of the Hyugga family. The rest of the body and face was hidden by a dark cloak so the person was indistinguishable.

She momentarily glanced back at the little girl and breathed with relief when she saw her fade into the background.

Turning back to the mysterious person she scowled. "Who are you?" she demanded. The person chuckled, the tone deep. "That's no way to speak to the man who saved you; you were in quite a difficult situation there." She narrowed her eyes but she relaxed slightly when she heard four pairs of feet land behind her.

"I appreciate the help," she growled impatiently. "But I don't trust strangers; who are you?"

The person laughed deeply this time, but for some reason it sent chills up her spine and she shuddered almost invisibly. "You have good reason not to trust strangers kunoichi," he agreed flatly. "But I'm afraid my name will remain hidden, as will the rest of my hidden being."

For a moment, Sakura felt an explosion of malevolent chakra that sent her to her knees, gasping, with her hands on the sides of her head.

Sasuke and Naruto fell too, the weight becoming too much to bear. Once Sakura felt the weight lift she was looking directly into the strangers eyes, but she couldn't help but think that they were familiar.

"If you know what's good for you, stay out of my way." He growled before he turned towards the thicker part of the forest, he quickly added. "Sakura Haruno." He jumped into the trees before any of them could stop him.

They slowly stood up and turned to their leaders, only to see that they had broken out in cold sweats. "That chakra..." Kakashi murmured. "It's familiar..." Itachi remained silent and merely looked at where the man had left.

Sakura gritted her teeth. "I know him from somewhere..." she informed them frustratedly. "I just can't remember where..." Why couldn't she remember?! She cried inwardly, beyond frustrated.

Itachi shook his head. "It doesn't matter," he muttered. "The little girl is gone and the closest town is not far away; we can recuperate there. Our target area is only a mile away max from then on."

Everyone nodded and got ready to travel. Itachi grabbed Sakura's wrist before she turned away and looked at her pointedly. "And you are going to tell us what happened after we lost you. No excuses." he added as she was about to protest.

Sakura huffed but grudgingly agreed and they both made their way over to the rest of the group.

They were completely oblivious to the sad stare directed at them from behind, as a tear ran down a small figures cheek.

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Annnddd... Done! I hope you guys enjoyed that!

Who is the person who saved Sakura? Where is he from and why is he familiar? Who was watching them at the end of the chapter and why were they so sad?

So many questions that need answering! I'm loving this story already!

Hope you all enjoyed it!

Ja ne!

Sakurablossom606 xx


	4. Chapter 4: A fine line

Hey everybody! Um... Is anyone else slightly unnerved by how quickly these are getting updated?

Right, I'm just going to let you know in advance that I'm going on a school trip to Poland next Saturday! How cool is that?! IM SO EXCITED!

It's been my dream to go since I was young and I can't wait to get there! I'm going with my absolute best friend and we're both looking forward to it.!

I can't believe how lucky I've been! It's an absolute dream come true!

IMPORANT!

Anyway, I'd just like to put in a recommendation for another Itasaku called 'A Cherry Blossom's Compromise' and its written by aniimefreak161!

I absolutely 100% recommend you read this fic it's one of the best I've ever read and it definitely deserves some more recognition. It's on the same level as some other amazing Itasaku fics that are some of the most reviewed on the site like 'Before the dawn' and 'Perception'. Please don't let the number of reviews fool you! It's worth reading!

On with the chapter!

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Chapter 4: A fine line

They managed to make it to the town they could rest at early the next morning; they were all beyond exhausted and even the 9 year ANBU captain Itachi was visibly becoming tired.

Once they ordered their rooms, three of them, one for the team captains, one for Sasuke and Naruto and one for Sakura, they all went into the captain's room.

Sasuke and Naruto leaned on the wall, Sakura sank into the lumpy sofa and Kakashi and Itachi stood before them. "I know you are tired," Itachi sighed wearily. "But we need to all be on the same level before we can retire to our rooms." Naruto groaned and rubbed his eyes sleepily. (AN: Awww! Kawaii~!)

"Come on Itachi, what could possibly be so important that we have to speak about it now?" Itachi's eyes darkened. "First we need to know what happended to Sakura after we all got separated." All eyes turned to Sakura, who's eyes were dark and very stressed.

She sighed. "When the tree fell, I got caught off guard by the one falling behind me and I was knocked unconscious. But when I woke up, I had no idea where I was, no comprehension that the area I was layed in was the area I fell in." She shook her head and let out a hollow, amused huff. "I healed my head but I was completely petrified; I wasn't sure if I had been kidnapped, moved or being watched."

Continuing in the same disheartened monotone, she plowed on. "I jumped onto the nearest fallen tree and imagine my surprise when I found that all trees in a two mile radius had also been levelled to the ground. I was just about to start making my way towards the nearest forest when..." She closed her eyes and swallowed. "When... The little girl called out my name from only feet away from my back." There was a deadly silence for a moment before Sakura continued, her voice becoming more obviously distressed.

"I didn't know what else to do, so I ran. I just panicked. I ran as fast as I could but she taunted me, asking me to... Play with her..."

"Why are you running Sakura Haruno? Don't you want to see me again? Don't you wanna... Play a game?"

"She knew my name, my full name; how did she know that? I just had no idea what she wanted but I didn't want to find out, I ran to the forest edge but she got quicker and I started screaming, hoping I'd be able to catch your attention."

Kakashi inclined his head slightly, his brow furrowed. "So that's why you were so worried; you thought she might have had a plan." Sakura nodded, her eyes watering slightly in her worry. "When you called back I ran but as I got close, the girl managed to appear a few metres in front of me and it would have been impossible to avoid had that man not intervened. I don't know what would have happened... But I doubt it would have been good." She shrugged. "You guys know the rest."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I don't know what caused those trees to collapse... But it wasn't accidental." Naruto snorted. "I could have told them that bastard." Sasuke gave his best friend an irritated look. "Tch. Whatever idiot." Before Naruto could retort, Itachi intervened. "We need to discuss one last thing them we can rest; what do we do about that man?"

The mood darkened considerably after that and tension rose in the room. "He's incredibly strong," Kakashi murmured. "That chakra wasn't normal. It's strong enough to physically hinder someone if he releases it at any one time." Sakura nodded. "And he knew my name; that's not a coincidence, he wouldn't have been there to hear it from the girl. I couldn't sense any other presences in the area."

Naruto sighed and leaned his head farther back against the wall. "Damn Sakura, you sure are popular recently aren't you?" Sakura growled irritably. "Shut up Naruto," she hissed. "It's damn frustrating; what reason would he have to know my name?" She narrowed her eyes. "But that guy seems familiar to me; VERY familiar. It's really starting to piss me off."

Itachi sighed. "I think the best course of action would be to try and get some info out of him; his name or even his appearance if we can. He knows something about that little girl, you can tell by the way he reacted; if he is as unaware as he let on earlier, or was indeed apathetic of the whole situation Sakura was in, he would have done nothing." He narrowed his eyes slightly and Sasuke continued for him. "Yet he did; he deliberately put himself in danger to get Sakura out of the way. Selfless acts are not a common occurrence among rogue ninja, if that's what he is."

Sakura shook her head, wearily placing a hand on her temples before letting out a slow sigh and glancing up at the worried looks her friends were giving her. "Look guys," she started quietly. "I'm sorry but I don't want to talk about this anymore. I'm tired, I'm scared and I just want to finish this mission. Please, let me go back to my room." For a moment there was quiet, then Itachi nodded slowly. "Of course, I'm sorry; we didn't take into account how taxing this must of been for you. We'll see you in the morning."

Sakura rose from her seat on the sofa, wordless and silent, before leaving the room and shutting the door behind her; an awkward silence descended upon the room as they heard her own door open and shut and muffled, quiet crying made itself known.

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She was running, filled with so much horror and adrenaline that her body was moving without thought or consent as she practically flew down the dusty streets. Suddenly, she stumbled and fell in mid-stride, her small fragile body colliding painfully with the cold hard ground beneath her and drew blood from her exposed right arm and leg.

She sucked in a deep, panicked breath when dark shinobi shoes came in her view, illuminated by the pale moon above, and a cruel chuckle escaped the persons throat.

"Sakura," the person spat, tone dripping with pure hatred. "You're weak. Running from the truth like a coward and here you are now, laying in the dirt like a little worm that's waiting to be eaten by the bird."

Tears welled up in her eyes at the words but they were true, they were all true...

Suddenly, it was dark; it was dark everywhere. She was floating in the sea of darkness. Her heart pounded in fear; she had heard of this type of ninja technique before; genjutsu was it? Yes, that was it; you could manipulate a persons senses and make them see and feel what you wanted them to...

Then the world came back into startling clarity. It was almost blinding and as Sakura sat up, she rubbed her eyes to adjust to the brightness of her surroundings. Then when she finally cracked her eyes open, she wished she never had. The world was red, there was no life in the bodies before her.

There was only death.

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Sakura woke up to screaming; she realised a moment later that it was her. Her breathing was fast and panicked, tears already streaming down her cheeks, and she covered her face in both hands and let herself sob. She was gently pulled into a comforting, warm chest. "It's okay Sakura, it wasn't real; it was only a nightmare."

Sakura shook like a leaf, her movements uncontrollable and frightened, and shook her head; there was no way that could possibly have been a dream. It was too real; she could still feel the cuts from falling on the path and the blood trickling down her legs...

Gradually, her breathing slowed and she stopped shaking; but she wasn't ready to face them yet, she couldn't face there questions and she didn't want them to see her tear stained face.

When she finally plucked up enough courage, she pulled away from the person, who could now be identified as Itachi much to her embarrassment, and kept her eyes fixed on the blanket she was now holding in her hands.

For a moment there was silence, before Naruto softly asked. "Do you want to talk about it?" Sakura slowly shook her head; this wasn't something she wanted to even think about.

Letting out a shuddering breath, she slowly looked up and smiled. "I'm okay now; thank you for coming so quickly." Kakashi had concern lacing his next words. "You were very distressed for a while before we managed to wake you up; we couldn't touch you without you wrenching away as if we'd burned you."

Sakura sat in silence, mulling over his words before a light tapping came from the window.

Kakashi sighed. "Probably a messenger bird from the Hokage; she said she wanted regular updates from us and it's probably a reminder that we've not done it yet." Sakura smiled slightly "I'll go get it; probably something for me as it came to my room." She glared at him playfully. "Lady Tsunade probably knows that you would just ignore it and wait for it to go away."

Kakashi scratched the back of his head, awkwardly chuckling about the honest truth, while Sakura sighed and rose from the bed. Walking gracefully over to the window, she threw open the curtains with a smile, ready to read the letter her mentor had sent.

Only to come face to face with the bloody smile of a little girl.

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Ooooo! Cliffhanger! Again I'm sorry but this was just begging to be left!

I hope you guys enjoyed this one; I think it's one of my best ones yet!

What did Sakura see after she opened her eyes in the genjutsu? Why was that person being so cruel? And OMG THE LITTLE GIRL WAS IN THE WINDOW!

Sorry this chapter took a little longer to update than usual; no valid excuse but I hope it was worth the wait!

Ja Ne everyone! Please leave me reviews they make me so happy!

Sakurablossom606 xx


	5. Chapter 5: What have I done?

Hey guys!

I'm loving the number of people actually reading this story, it makes me really happy that so many of you are interested!

But I have to express the feeling that I'm a little disappointed in the number of reviews I've had from people; if you have time, even if you're guest, it would mean the world to me if you could leave a review. It doesn't have to be long, it could just be one word but I really want to know if you like the story; if you can, I'd love to know what you think of the plot and my writing style!

I would like to dedicate this chapter to all the people who have reviewed so far:

**- 1Animefeakgurl**

**- ayingchan**

**- Aurora-Chan**

**- A random guest! Thank you unknown citizen!**

**- Dina Sana**

**- Korabu**

And an extra special mention to **DiamondForest** who has reviewed every chapter I've published so far! You even reviewed on my other story! Love you! xx

Anyway on with the chapter!

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Chapter 5: What have I done?

Sakura only had to take one look at the face in the window to feel her body tense up in horror, her eyes widening and hand flying to her mouth to stifle the nauseated sound she made. Sasuke pulled her back to them, trying to get her away from the little girl in case she tried to do..._something_; she could be there to do anything if she had travelled from the forest they had been before.

She could see her teammates visibly stiffen at the sight of the bloodied little child scarlet haired child; she herself may have seen her before, and in some twisted way have _SOME_ form of understanding with her, but the boys did not. She was a complete enigma to them and they did not know how she was going to react.

The little girl pouted in a way that would have been considered cute, had she not spilled blood from her lips at the action.

"Sakura," she whined exasperatedly. "You ran away from me _again_! I thought I told you I wanted you to stay and play!" Sakura swallowed thickly, her throat and mouth becoming suddenly very dry. "What do you want from me?" she croaked. "What have I done to make you follow me?"

The little girl giggled and Sakura inhaled sharply at the vaguely familiar noise. "You mean you don't remember?" The little girl questioned innocently, head tilted to the side curiously. "Do I need to remind you of that night?" Sakura narrowed her eyes in confusion and strode forwards, moving away from her friends and standing only feet away from the window. "I don't understand!" She cried frustratedly. "I've never done anything to you in my life, I've never even _seen_ you before!"

The little girl grinned. "You'll see!" Before Sakura could even make a noise, the little girl had glided through the wall at an alarming speed and passed right through Sakura.

Shouts of her name that sounded from behind her were soon lost as images flashed through her mind.

_A young girl and her older pink haired friend played together on the swings, laughing gleefully. _

_Smiles as they shared an ice cream together at the ice cream parlour. _

_Cries of horror as the little girls fragile, lifeless body fell to the ground, covered in blood and staining her brilliantly white nightgown..._

**"STOP IT!"**

Sakura fell to her knees, head held in her hands, tears welling in her eyes and bile rising in the back of her throat. "I didn't do it... I wasn't the one to kill you!" The little girl turned her head slightly from where she stood only feet from her male friends, a frown playing on her young face.

"I didn't kill you... I didn't know you...! _Please_... just leave me in peace!" Sakura pleaded, pain now flourishing in her temples from the aftermath of the possession.

The little girl cried out in frustration, eyes closing briefly in her anger. "I will not stop!" She insisted stubbornly. "You need to remember!" Just as she was about to make a move towards Sakura again, Itachi flashed in front of her, sword unsheathed and shining in the moonlight. "Don't touch her," he growled, the sword only inches from the girls forehead.

The child looked completely unaffected by the protective gesture show by the other ninja. "This won't affect me mister," she told him irritably. "Because if you haven't already noticed..." There was a slight pause, in which the little girl looked to Sakura's trembling form.

"_I'm already dead_."

With those words, she vanished, her voice lingering for a moment after she left.

Quickly, Itachi, Sasuke, Kakashi and Naruto knelt next to Sakura and sat there comfortingly. Sakura took a deep breath before looking up. "The sooner we finish this mission, the sooner we can go home. Please, can you just stay with me for now?" When she got nods of assent she slowly got up and went back to the bed.

"But I have something to tell you,"

They looked up at her questioningly. Sakura gritted her teeth slightly. "I might have known her when I was younger."

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After explaining what the little girl had made her see, they had all gone to bed, uneasiness washing over them so much that they all got little sleep that night.

The following morning, they awoke with very little sleep and very wary nerves. While Itachi gave back the room keys to the front desk, Team 7 were all sat together, brainstorming possible ideas. "So you don't think you knew her at the academy?" Naruto questioned, to which Sakura shook her head firmly. "She's too young, at least 3 years younger if her physical stature and nature is correct; but she may be acting so I'm not sure."

"And you definitely didn't know her from another country you might have visited with your family?" Again Sakura shook her head.

Sasuke growled frustratedly. "This is _impossible_!" He groaned. "She's not a family member, or else you would have remembered, you didn't know her from the academy either so where could she _possibly_ have seen you before?"

Sakura shook her head tiredly; she had absolutely no idea whatsoever. It was really starting to irritate her; she didn't seem to know anything about this mission and was beginning to feel like she could offer nothing to it.

They all looked up when Itachi walked back over to them. "We've got to start travelling to the town; we're late so any possible tracks or clues may be gone by now, so be ready to execute a thorough search." The youngest members of team 7 nodded. "Yes Captain!"

Just as they were about to leave, Itachi called out behind them. "Sakura, can I speak to you a minute please?" The boys looked at Sakura protectively, aware of Itachi's feelings for their only female member. Itachi gave them a pointed glare and they all left the reception area reluctantly.

Sakura turned away from them and smiled at her best friend. "What's up?" She asked curiously, making her way over to him; he looked a little uneasy. "Can we go somewhere a little more private please Sakura? I'd rather talk about this elsewhere." Sakura blinked in surprise but recovered quickly, flashing him a quick smile. "Sure! Let's go to the gardens outside."

As they made their way out to the gardens, Sakura's mind was going haywire. 'Oh god oh god oh god! Has he figured out that I like him? Is he going to send me _HOME_?!'

When they were out of the way of any potential passersby or eavesdroppers, Itachi turned to her and looked at her seriously. "Sakura, tell me honestly; is there anyone on the team at the minute that could possibly be distracting you? Someone you're attracted to possibly? I've never seen you act like this before." Sakura thought she saw his eyes flash jealously, but maybe it was just wishful thinking. "You've been off recently, not just here and at the hotel, you were like this for a while at home too. Do not lie to me; I'll be able to tell."

Sakura paled slightly before turning impossibly red. 'Oh shit!' she cursed inwardly, small beads of sweat beginning to appear on her forehead. 'What the hell do I do _now_?!' She swallowed slightly; he'd said not to lie so she'd tell the truth and just have to hope that he didn't ask her who it was.

"Um... Yes..." She admitted in complete embarrassment. "Yeah there is someone..." Did Itachi look disappointed, or was it just her? What was up with him? "Oh?" he deadpanned quietly.

'Please don't ask the forbidden question, _please_ don't ask the forbidden question...'

"Who might that be?"

'Oh damn, oh damn, oh damn... I'm _so_ screwed!'

Sakura blushed so furiously, she was sure she was going to faint dead away. "D-Do I have to tell you...?" She asked quietly, to which Itachi nodded stubbornly, his onyx eyes never leaving hers.

"Well-Um-I l-like... Um..."

"Naruto?" Sakura's head shot up in mortification. "NO!" She half screeched. "Now way in hell do I like-"

"Sasuke then?" He queried even more quietly than before. Sakura just grimaced, but inwardly she was panicking at the limited options there now were. "No, d-definitely not Sasuke..."

There was an awkward pause for a moment. "It's Kakashi?" he asked slowly, his tone not hiding his obvious distaste.

That's when Sakura lost it.

"Dammit Itachi!" she yelled frustratedly, much to his confusion. "It's you! I love _you_!" Not even giving his shocked face another thought, she babbled. "At first I thought you were really arrogant and a jerk but after I had been hanging around you for a while I realised how kind you were and I realised how much I cared about you and what you thought of me so I just tried to be friends with you!" She paused to breathe and what she'd just said now fully occurred to her and she started to turn red and he words came a lot more slowly.

"I didn't want to admit how I felt because I didn't want you to see me as another fangirl, or for things to be awkward between us; you probably don't feel the same way so that why I never-" She was cut off by Itachi's hand on her cheek and she started in surprise, not realising how close he had gotten to her while she was talking.

"Sakura," He said her name deeply in his throat, his voice becoming slightly strained as he moved both arms possesively around her waist and pulled her to him. "Shut up."

With those words he dipped his head and gently captured her lips with his.

Sakura's eyes widened at the man before her, not daring to believe it; he actually returned her feelings? She relaxed into his arms, eyes closing, and kissed him back, her own arms winding around his neck. Itachi growled slightly and pulled her even more closely to him, making a sound of contentment come from the back of Sakura's throat.

After a time (Sakura could not be sure; it might have been minutes, seconds, hours...), they pulled back and Sakura blushed slightly as darkened eyes met her own. She looked almost confused. "Why?" She questioned breathlessly, her eyes searching his. He smirked lazily at her. "You appear to be almost as oblivious as myself; I have also been... _Attracted_ to you for a long time. I didn't want to ruin what we had by pursuing my feelings."

Sakura could have cried; she couldn't believe that she had been so completely oblivious to how he felt for so long. They both had though in all fairness, both thinking that the other would not be interested. She smiled at him and pecked him lightly on the lips. "I see..." She rested her head on his chest. "Well we'd better be getting back to he others; they might be getting worried." She said this reluctantly and Itachi picked up on it, looking smug.

"Disappointed Sakura?" he questioned in amusement, at which said girl blushed furiously. "Shut up." She growled irritably, untangling his arms as he did. "Sakura, when we get back home... Would you be willing to court me?" Sakura looked up at him in surprise; so he really meant this...

She smiled radiantly. "Of course!" she beamed. She was just so happy, so happy...

...That neither of them realised the figure that was watching silently in the trees above them, smirking all the while.

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And cut! Aww, Itachi and Sakura finally admitted their feelings for one another! I apologise if that was cheesy, I don't do romance scenes often in my writing so it's not something I've practiced much.

Hope everyone enjoyed that and don't forget to review; **if you review I'll put in a special mention for every single reviewer! Yes even you random non-member**!

Ja ne everyone!

Sakurablossom606 xx


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